Day 11 — In the realm of Indiana Jones

Our first free weekend was spent at Jaguar Paw, where we were guided along a river and through fascinating caves. We hiked about 45 minutes through the jungle until we reached a crystal blue watering hole. From there we mounted our tubes and geared up our headlamps for floating through the caves. Soon after, we could not see the entrance or exit, and all light was extinguished other than the small flashlights strapped to our foreheads. In the caves we saw the film location for the action scenes in Indiana Jones, it was pretty cool.

On Sunday, I took a trip to one of the Mayan Ruins close to San Ignacio called Xunantunich. From the ground, it looked somewhat like a nicely carved heap of rocks. But as we began to climb the steep steps that have lasted hundreds of years, I began to admire the beauty and strength of the ancient structures. Once we reached the top, we could see all of San Ignacio and its surrounding areas, including the Guatemalan border. This country has such amazing rolling hills and lush landscape that cannot be fully appreciated until you see it from this perspective.